Bringing Up the Past
by JTHMManson4
Summary: Bulma and Vegeta have an unbreakable bond- but with this new wave of memories, what will they do to handle it? R & R.


_The nightmares…_

As much as they were horrifying, they were… _nostalgic._

Blood and tears were often in them, splattering across his vision; the harsh cold laughs in his ears were ringing to no tomorrow. Explosions tore races literally apart. Empathy had been a foreign concept to him, and his comrades—

He knew it was sickening, but that opinion had changed over the years.

He finally felt at peace nearly about them, as much they had tortured him—he had control over them, the nightmares.

The years with Freeza were now nothing to him but survival years. There had been no choice—it had been only _do._

To be there, with his fellow race what was left of it, it had mattered. Of course, he wouldn't admit it, even to this very day. But to be able to rely on them—even if just in the earlier years—meant **EVERYTHING.**

_No, _he didn't care about Nappa's death. Not until years later, he actually had.

Same for Radditz's.

He—

"Vegeta?"

The pointy-haired Saiyajin blinked, changing his vision from looking onto the black stones up to his lovely blue-haired wife. "What?" Unpleasant tone.

A little scowl had formed across her brows. "…You've been spacing out."

A scowl back. "So?"

"Vegeta…" He had been doing it often in the last two weeks.

Vegeta turned away a bit. "I'm fine." Was his fast, usual response.

"Vegeta—" Bulma repeated in a firmer response, as she put a hand on his shoulder which tensed. "Please tell me finally what's been wrong."

"I—" He knew the desperation and stubbornness clear within her voice. He growled out, "Later."

A concerned expression was his only acknowledgement. A forced smile suddenly fell onto her face as she pulled him along. "Come on. The sun's setting—let's take a walk along there." She pointed over towards a location a little farther away from the big park they were in.

Vegeta held back a huff. "Fine, woman."A twinge of sadness filled him for a brief moment—he really should be paying more attention to his woman right now.

_Damned emotions._

He allowed himself to be pulled—they were heading over towards a ledge that stretched for several feet and over it was water gently lapping against the stone surface. Some plants were growing over a portion of it—allowing the sunlight to bounce off the green leaves, along with the light tinted brown of the ledge wall. The lowering sun danced across the water in peace further completing the beauty of the scene.

Bulma finally slowed her pace, letting go of him somewhat as she motioned to the water. "…Isn't it beautiful?" She spoke in a soft tone.

His vision ended up fixating a bit on it—the color reminding him of a recent nightmare…

_Blood was still splattered on the ground, making the soil look awkward as the blood started to soak more into it. The little prince tossed a leg across the forest, making it land somewhere out of his sight._

_"Heh. Another one bites the dust."_

_Nappa gave him a thoughtful look, smiling gently and sadly a bit. "..I think you're finally getting used to it all."_

_Vegeta felt a pang in his heart, but he promptly ignored it. His evil grin was finally getting easier and easier to do—it slid right onto his face. "I am. They were pathetic."_

_Nappa gave a loud chuckle as he sighed. "I hope you don't lose your humanity to Freeza, kid." It was quiet, as he sat on a log in front of a lake off to the side of where they were._

_Vegeta turned his head as he snorted. "I'll be fine." He said stubbornly, but then said more quietly, "…That bastard won't make go crazy." He turned and looked in Nappa's eyes as he sat down on the log himself, crossing his legs and arms._

_"Hn."_

_Vegeta signed a royal Saiyajin symbol, and Nappa quickly returned it, almost on reflex._

_"Enough of this softness, Nappa." His voice sharp, but only a bit louder than before._

_Nappa laughed once more. "Kid, you need some to survive."_

_Vegeta tch'ed, as he picked up a stone and tossed it in the lake, making the water ripple in response._

_"Kid…'' Nappa suddenly snorted. "Well.. you're barely one. 12 already…" He shook his head, realizing time went too fast. He motioned to the water further in front of them. "Appreciate this, my prince. We can see whatever we want to—This time, it's a beautiful lake. Purple water gently rippling against this soil here… Different, exotic plants adorning this area. The sun—" He pointed towards the sky. "—Its rays are painting across the water giving it a nice mix of color. It's—"_

_"Enough."_

_Nappa obeyed, immediately going silent._

_Vegeta found his sight entranced—even watching the little bugs hovering around the plants._

_It made Nappa silently smile._

"VEGETA."

The prince shook his head. "Huh?" A simple turn of his head revealed an angry Bulma.

"How could you?! This is supposed to be a date, you jerk!" She exclaimed, making a couple people look over.

Vegeta sighed angrily, looking right into her eyes. "You win, woman. You'll get your answer when in private."

"I better!"

Vegeta hmphed as he turned away.

Bulma sighed, going over into his view. "Let's go home then… We can enjoy this another time. If you're ready to tell me, then I want to give you that time."

Vegeta nodded, letting her lead the way back to the car.

A sort of silence fell immediately as they got into the car—she focused on driving, while he simply looked at the environment through the window. Trees and animals quickly enough traded in for buildings, smaller then taller, as time went on. Before he knew it, they were home—right in front of the yellow dome they called home. A certain sort of dread fell on Vegeta as he got out of the car, barely registering her door also opening and closing. It got **_worse_** as he got closer to the building—

This sort of feeling was almost always accompanied by being open about his nightmares and flashbacks.

They got settled in—her putting her purse on the table with a simple motion. It seemed almost timed as they both sat down at the kitchen table sitting across from each other.

It only took one beat—

"Woman, I'm having my nightmares again."

**A/N: **Been awhile since I wrote Vegeta- but what a fun character to write. Not 100% sure of where I want to go with this- but I do some ideas forming in my mind lol.

Enjoy! :)


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